Folding shelf support



R. H. STITES FOLDING SHELF SUPPORT Filed May 1, 1933 :INVENTOR.

' fi/xdszizes' BY 2 EATTORNEY.

Patented Aug. 4, 1925.

UNITED STATES 1,548,392 PATENT OFFICE.

RAYMOND? II. sums, or ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS, AssIcNon T rInY-To'rs FURNITURE COMPANY, or ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS, A FIRM CONSISTING or GAR-L n. swnnson, RAYMOND H. s'rrrns, WALTER w. WICKHAM, AND FRANK I. LARSON, ALL or ROCKFORD, ILLINOIS.

.Application fi1ed May 1,

To all whom it may. concern:

Be it known that I, RAYMOND H. Srrrns,

a .citizen of the United States, residing at Rockford, in the county of'Winnebago and 6 State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Folding Shelf Supports, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings. This invention relates to hinged shelves such as are shown in connection with the bathing cabinet described and claimed in my '00- ending application Serial No. 635,940 ledof even date herewith, and the invention particularly relates to means for supporting the shelf in a horizontal position, it being understood that while this shelf is particularly designed for use with the bathing?- cabinet illustrated in my oopending application, it is not necessarily limited thereto; r

The general object of the invention is to provided a folding shelf vsupport so constructed that it will fold out of sight when the shelf isdropped and that when in place the sections of which the support is made will be locked against any movement tending to break the joint.

A further object is to provide a device of this character in which the shelf is raised to a position slightly above the horizontal and then lowered to a horizontal position, this action acting to lock the two sections of the brace.

Other objects will appear in the course of the following description.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure l is a side elevation of a shelf and my improved supporting means there for, showing in dotted lines the shelf collapsed;

Figure 2 is a perspective View of the section 14 of the brace;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the section 15;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the lower supporting bracket.

Referring to these drawings, 10 designates a shelf of any suitable character which is hinged by means of the hinge leaves 11 and 12 to a horizontal member 13, which is sup ported by means of a vertical panel 13.

1923. Serial No. 635,941.

These parts 13 and 15 are shown in my co-pending application for bathing cabinets.

For the purpose of supporting the shelf 10, I provide a brace or support consisting of the sections 14 and 15. The section 14 at its upper end is pivotally connected to an ear16 depending from a plate 17 which is apertured for the passage of screws whereby the plate may be attached to the shelf 10. The member 15 at its lower end is pivoted to an car 18 projecting from a plate 19 which is adapted to be attached by screws to the member 13 The two ,strips or sections 14 and 15 are of such length that they will overlap each other. The section 14 is formed at its extremity with a longitudinally extending slot 20 and the upper edge of this section inward of the slot 20 is formed with a downwardly and outwardly inclined slit 21. The section 15 at that end which overlaps the section 14 carries the two pins 22 and 23. The pinv 22 constitutes a pivot pin and operates in the slot 20. The pin 23 engages in the slit 21 so that these two sections 14 and 15 may be turned into an aligning relation and when in the aligning relation the pin 23 will fit within the slit 21 and the two sections will be locked in this aligning relation. This is due to the fact that the inner end 21 of the slit 21 is spaced longitudinally of the section in which it is formed from the outer end 21 thereof, so that it is necessary before the sections can be swung out of alignment that they first be shifted longitudinally. Attention is directed to the fact that this longitudinal movement, in addition to moving the pin through the mouth of the slot, must necessarily be accompanied by a break-joint motion between the sections 14 and 15, and this pin must move transversely of the member 14 and in order for this to be effected the pivoted ends of the members 14 and 15 must swing toward the pivoted connection of the shelf. \Vhile in this position, if the shelf be lowered the result will be collapsing of the brace. When the brace is moved from the collapsed to the bracing position and the shelf moved into operative position, it first shifted slightly above such operative position and the pivoted ends of the braces then have a motion away from the shelf and tend to continue SUChill'ldiZlOIl'WhBIlithey are brought-to a stop by the engagement of the pin 23 against the side of the 111emhenlt,.

sothatmif theshelf be.dropped quickly after beinggmo ved-I-ahove the horiiontalv line to.

permit the, pini23lto, engagein-the slot 21', these links will naturally" move intoali g'nment with one another as the shelf drops to horizontal position;

WVhen the shelf 10 is turned from its depending position to itslioriz'ontali positiong it is shifted slightly above this horizontal position which draws the link or section 14- upward-'1 on the pin 22 a-nd2then;;it=is-allowed to lower into its horizontal position; WlHOii causesthe section l t to travel-"downward: longitudinally onthe: pin 22' and the pin 23-to13ass into the loekingslit 2l,'-thus looking the two sections ii1--their== aligned relation; hen theshelfis to be dropped out ofthe way; it' 'is lifted out of: its hori zontal -position and the-sIOt on either of the seetions lt or 1'5 9 will shift the seetions inward and bring the loeking 'pinilii out of I the safety look slot and allow 1 the-support to collapse; 4

WVhile- I haveillUStTZlt8donly one lug V 16 and one lug 18 at the upperand lower-- end'sof the sections 14: and =15" respeetively it will' be obviousthat e a hifu'roated member might he used zit-each end within which the the sunf acel toawhich they areiattaohed. It will also be noted thatdthese iseetians l4 and v15 are made of fiat iron andnot of 40 angle iron. and that when, the seetions a re fully engaged;.withfleaeltother by m ans of the twofipins 221M523 ther ill? be 110 tendencyof the aiiits toltu' iupon each other or bend or otherwi'seget "ontofsliape.

. I i b;

1. A brace for shelves or the like formed in two seetionsthaying their adjacent ends overlapped, one of the sections being formed with a longitudinally: extending slot 1 with a slit extending diagonally inward ifmm the upper-edge of'the' seotion 'andihaving its: inner end further spa e-ed froxmthe adjaoent L end of the slot than its outernend, the other-f1 section being provided-with aipivotfpinepasay:

ing through "the slot? and withi aJIooking pin disposed at: thelinner fiend ofisaidifslitit when the members are inalignedhrelatiom" I 22.48:: brace for shelvesi or the like mmprising a pair ofiimembers:=pivoted to one another by a pivot- .permittinga longitudinal? movement of the members witlirrelation to; one another; one of the 1 members: having a.

slit and tl1e'0th81' 0f thewlmembersuhaning;

a pin, said slit extending A diagonally i into '1-I the member through; the i edge. thereof, the i inner end of tlie slita receivingrthewgimwiiari the members are Ami V alignedr relmtion and t1 so arranged upons the shiftinglpivolrtherm of that their combined length'isu atritstmwi'a 

